The East Coast Railway will run three Special trains between Puri and Howrah in a bid to facilitate the movement of stranded passengers in the Odisha train accident.

Train services have been affected in Bhadrak-Kharagpur Railway Section on Howrah-Chennai Main Line, an official statement said on Sunday. As a result of this many passengers from Puri to Howrah are likely to be stranded in Puri.

As per sources, Puri Howrah Special (02801) from Puri will leave at 1900hrs (07.00 p.m.) and will run via the Jakhapura-Kendujhargarh-Dongoaposi-Kharagpur route.

Puri Howrah Special (02803) from Puri will leave at 2100hrs (09.00 p.m.) and will run via the Cuttack-Angul-Sambalpur City-Jharsuguda route.

Puri Howrah Special (02805) from Puri will leave at 2200hrs (10.00 p.m.) and will run via the Jakhapura-Kendujhargarh-Dongoaposi-Kharagpur route.

Earlier today, Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik announced free bus services to Kolkata from Puri, Bhubaneswar and Cuttack amid the disruption of train services due to the Balasore train crash.

It may be mentioned that, as many as 275 people lost their lives and over 1,000 people sustained injuries in the tragic train accident in Odisha’s Balasore that occurred on June 2.

Meanwhile, Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that the Railway Board has sought a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the accident. Earlier, the railway minister stated that the train crash occurred due to a change in ‘electronic interlocking’.